news On a July evening a few years ago, a massive bull moose wallowed belly-deep in a small stream in the canoe country north of Ely. Facing the other direction, he had no idea a canoe was silently slipping up behind him. He kept dipping for the stems of water lilies and chewing them in the rich evening light.
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Perham, 56573

Perham Minnesota 222 2nd Avenue SE 56573

2013-03-04 19:38:14

On a July evening a few years ago, a massive bull moose wallowed belly-deep in a small stream in the canoe country north of Ely. Facing the other direction, he had no idea a canoe was silently slipping up behind him. He kept dipping for the stems of water lilies and chewing them in the rich evening light.

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We approached so closely that the 17-year-old in the bow of the canoe began backpaddling. He looked over his shoulder and shot me a silent glance that told me we were too close to that moose.

He probably was right.

I doubt that he will ever forget the moment. Thousands of others have had equally memorable encounters with Minnesota moose. But sadly, those encounters are growing less and less frequent.

The latest survey of Minnesota's moose, released 10 days ago, brought more bad news. The population of Minnesota moose, perhaps the most iconic of all north woods creatures, had dropped again.

The population has been declining for several years, but recent developments are cause for more concern.

"When you get a population with low adult survival and low cow-calf counts, that's when you're in trouble. That's where we are now," Mark Lenarz, the forest wildlife and populations group leader for the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources, told the News Tribune.

The current population in Northeastern Minnesota is estimated at 4,900 animals, down from 5,500 last year and down from a high of 8,000 to 9,000 animals. The ratio of calves to cows is at a record low of 24 calves per 100 cows, according to the DNR's aerial survey. The ratio of bulls to cows, historically one-to-one, is has dropped to 64 bulls per 100 cows.

In Northwestern Minnesota, the moose population has dwindled from several thousand in the 1980s to fewer than 100 now.

"On an optimistic day, I think we can do a lot more to change the direction things are going," said Mike Schrage, a wildlife biologist with the Fond du Lac Band of Lake Superior Chippewa and a member of the state's Moose Advisory Committee. "I think we know a lot and could be doing a lot more."